Pink ribbons serve as part of California pear promotion plan

Brown, green, red and yellow are the colors commonly associated with pears. In October, California pear labels and packaging will turn pink.

The California Pear Advisory Board is collaborating with Dallas-based Susan G. Komen for the Cure for a promotion that coincides with National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

“We took on a cause marketing campaign because the Susan G. Komen foundation is known as one of the leading charitable foundations in the United States,” said Carolyn Becker, marketing and national accounts manager for the Sacramento-based pear board.

The Komen foundation has invested about $1.5 billion in research and community health programs since its inception in 1982, according to its website, and plans to award $60 million in research grants this year.

According to the American Cancer Society, breast cancer is second only to lung cancer in cancer-related deaths each year among U.S. women. One in eight American women will be diagnosed with the disease during their lifetimes.

The pear advisory board will donate $25,000 to the Komen foundation. In return, California grower-shippers will be able to use the foundation’s pink ribbon logo on cartons, Price Look-Up stickers and consumer packs during October, Becker said.

The advisory board also has customizable point-of-sale materials and tote bags available for retailers for the promotion, Becker said.

“From our point of view, it’s a great cause, and it could create some incremental movement,” said Kyle Persky, sales manager for Scully Packing LLC, Finely, Calif. “It could create some excitement with one of our key demographics, which is women and moms.”

Becker said the California Pear Advisory Board also will offer retailers a customizable back-to-school promotion, highlighted by a children’s coloring contest, in August.

The pear board also expects to have new how-to ripening videos for both consumers and retailers on its website — www.calpear.com — by the end of July, Becker said.

Becker said the video for retailers will help stores reduce shrink and deliver the ideal eating experience for consumers.

The website also is expected to be updated with new materials related to health and nutritional information, said Marilyn Dolan, public relations consultant for the pear board.

“The focus will be on the role of pears in weight loss,” Dolan said. “The high fiber content of pears makes them an excellent choice for people watching their weight. Obesity is also something that is quite important as a risk factor for many diseases including heart health and cancer. As such, the new health messaging will tie into our Susan G. Komen campaign as well as some past work we have done on the issue of women and heart health.”